Stephon Jamar Duncan Wiki – Bio
Delta Airlines flight attendant Stephon Jamar Duncan should have been detained in the air by crew members and other passengers while off duty on a flight from Los Angeles to Atlanta, officials said. ABC News reported that the plane was diverted to Oklahoma City and Duncan was arrested. Duncan, 34, is being held in custody after the incident that occurred on Friday, 11 June 2021.
Oklahoma City Police spokesman Jermaine Johnson told ABC News that Duncan threatened to “shoot down the plane.” According to police, Duncan made “terrorist threats”. Police told ABC News Duncan was showing signs of mental illness and was hospitalized after complaining of chest pain.
Delta Airlines said, “Thanks to the crew and passengers of Delta Flight 1730 (LAX to ATL) who helped detain an unruly passenger while the flight was diverted to Oklahoma City (OKC). The plane landed without incident and the passenger was ejected by the security forces. We apologize to our customers for the delay and any additional inconvenience this may cause. Delta said the flight continued to Atlanta after police searched the plane.
Here’s what you need to know about Stephon Duncan:
Strong Men’ on the Plane to Help Detain Duncan
Ali Burns, a passenger on the plane, tweeted, “Someone tried to hijack our plane from LAX to ATL. … The man announced that we should be close to our oxygen masks and tried to open the door. They then summoned all the ‘strong men’ to the front of the plane to rein in him. We landed in OKC because it was the closest airport to us.” “Update: he was trying to open the door to the outside, not the cockpit,” Burns later added. A video released by Burns shows a struggle in front of the plane.
According to Wired, it’s impossible for a person to open the door of an airplane in mid-air. Michele Meo, professor of materials at the University of Bath, told Wired: “You can’t open the plane because it’s pressurized, and the cabin pressure is higher than the outside air pressure. The difference can be up to 55158.1 Newtons per square meter (or 5500 kg applied to one square meter). Basically the door is sealed against the aircraft frame.”
Another video posted by a passenger, Steve Denton, shows the flight crew and passengers battling and holding Duncan.
Darren Genet, one of the passengers who helped, told ABC News that there was a “frock” and that he and the other passengers “barged in” to help restrain Duncan. “We were holding him and he was screaming and crying,” Genet told the news network. “And then one of the gentlemen on the flight was a Marine, and he came in and they took the restraints and we held him until we all wore the restraints. Until then, he was kind of apologetic.” An off-duty pilot also helped, according to ABC News.
“It was pretty scary,” says Genet. We were really lucky to be able to beat this guy.”
Denton told WSB-TV: “The passenger who caused the problem was constantly challenged. He got on the plane. He was wearing a helmet. Really weird behavior. He walked forward and grabbed the PA system, which knew exactly what to do, and explained, “hey, everybody, put on your oxygen masks because this flight is preparing for a lot of turbulence.”
The disruption to the weather involving Duncan is the latest in a series of weather events that have occurred since air travel increased as COVID-19 restrictions and fears were eased. A week before the Duncan incident, a flight from LAX to Detroit was diverted because a passenger threatened it, officials said. And earlier that same week, a flight attendant and passengers had to grab and zip up a man trying to raid the cockpit doors. In late May, a Southwest flight attendant was attacked by a passenger, leaving two teeth broken and bleeding.
Duncan Is a Michigan Native and His career with Delta
Duncan is a Michigan native, according to his Facebook page. She graduated from Northwestern High School in 2006 and then studied public relations and journalism at the University of Michigan-Flint, graduating in 2011 according to her Facebook profile.
Duncan started working as a flight attendant at Delta Airlines in 2015, according to her Facebook page. He also says he works for Peachtree Orthopedics on Facebook. “I love meeting new people and I’m an open-minded person,” she wrote in the “about” section of her Facebook profile.
On March 23, Duncan released a statement, “I want to announce to the world that the days of my creativity in the background are over. I AM THE RAPPER from the highest mountain in the world! And I love it! Take care of my music. His name is Ooeygooey. Let’s revive black lives!!!!! Follow me on IG: Ooeygooey87”
Man attempted to open plane door mid flight from LAX to ATL. @FoxNews @cnnbrk @ABC pic.twitter.com/QtVAb7nilf
— Benjamin Curlee (@BenjaminCurlee) June 12, 2021
She wrote on her Instagram profile, “Oooey gooey butter cake how inspired me to create a movement that will inspire others, make people laugh and put smiles on faces!”
Duncan Remains in Custody & He Could Face Federal Charges
Duncan is detained at the Oklahoma County Penitentiary, but Oklahoma court records show no charges against him. Duncan was expected to be charged with two counts of assault and assault at the state level, according to ABC News. But the FBI is investigating, and federal charges may also be brought against Duncan.
Duncan could not be reached for comment by the Heavy, and it was not immediately clear whether he had hired a lawyer to speak for him. Delta did not comment on Duncan’s employment status.
Another passenger, Brannon Nazarian, told NBC Los Angeles in an onboard announcement, “This is the captain speaking. We want all strong men to come in front of the plane to take care of a troubled passenger.” Nazarian told the news station, “The next thing I knew, there were people running forward and he started pushing people, and it was a terrible fight. He was fighting extremely hard with them. His feet were flying in the air. The flight attendant – he looked like he had a concussion.”
Benjamin Curlee told CNN, “I feared the worst. I prayed that God would protect my family in case I go. It was very tense, very adrenaline-charged.” Curlee told CNN that other passengers had described Duncan as “too chaotic, too strange…too inconsistent.” Curlee said Duncan wore a helmet, knee pads and elbow pads.
“I was hoping to sleep on that plane and that didn’t happen,” Curlee told CNN. “It feels so surreal… It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event. It’s really something that’s always in the back of your head that you wonder if it will ever happen. Well, it really happened today. I am very grateful that it did not end badly.”